ACE named Johnnetta B. Cole, director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art and former president of Spelman College (GA) and Bennett College (NC), the 2013 recipient of the Reginald Wilson Diversity Leadership Award.

Although women earn the majority of postsecondary degrees, they occupy just 26 percent of all college presidencies, according to recent data from ACE. To coordinate efforts to bridge that gap, ACE’s Inclusive Excellence Group last month convened Working Together to Move the Needle: Advancing Women in Higher Education Leadership.

Raising the education level of the overall U.S. population requires closing the educational gaps among racial/ethnic groups and by gender. Although the members of the younger generation of some racial/ethnic groups are more likely to attain college degrees than their predecessors, that is not the case across all groups. Other findings include: the high school completion rate for young people has not improved much, and college enrollment gaps have widened among racial/ethnic groups during the past two decades.

This 2010 edition analyzes the latest racial/ethnic and gender trends in high school completion, college enrollment, persistence, degree completion, faculty, administrators, and presidents. A key finding is that while postsecondary educational attainment continues to flat-line in the United States, attainment rates have dipped for the youngest group (aged 25 to 34). Produced with support from the GE Foundation, this edition also features an in-depth analysis of Hispanics. As immigrants, young adult Hispanics experience a host of barriers to further education. The report calls for a more realistic understanding of the implications of the Hispanic population on the nation’s educational and economic competitiveness.

Closing the educational gaps among racial/ethnic groups and by gender is essential for raising the education level of the overall U.S. population. However, the 2009 supplement finds that gaps among these groups remain substantial, and for some races/ethnicities the younger generation is less likely to attain college degrees than its predecessors. Other highlights include: the high school completion rate for young people has been at a standstill, while college enrollment gaps have widened among racial/ethnic groups during the past two decades.

This special supplement to the 22nd edition presents the latest data on high school completion and college participation rates, educational attainment rates, and degrees conferred. In each case, information is included for the racial and ethnic groups for whom data is available for the years reported.